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The Latest Update on Rocket Lab's First Interplanetary Spacecraft...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 09 Nov 2026 19:07:00 +0000

Rocket Lab / UC Berkeley

NASA’s ESCAPADE Completes Powered Earth Flybys, Now En Route to Mars (News Release)

NASA’s two ESCAPADE (Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers) spacecraft have each successfully completed a powered Earth flyby, using Earth’s gravity in combination with a sustained engine burn to slingshot themselves toward Mars. With these successful maneuvers complete, the twin spacecraft are on target to reach the Red Planet in September 2027.

“This is the first time NASA has used a powered Earth flyby to propel a spacecraft toward Mars, and we’ve now executed this maneuver twice, flawlessly, in just two days,” said Asal Naseri, acting associate flight director for the Heliophysics Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

The two ESCAPADE spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on November 13, 2025, when Earth and Mars were on opposite sides of the Sun. So instead of heading straight for the Red Planet, as most other Mars missions have done, both spacecraft entered a “loiter” or “Earth-proximity” orbit. They charted a first-of-its-kind, kidney-bean-shaped course around a place in space about a million miles from Earth called Lagrange point 2, which is a gravitational balancing point on the opposite side of Earth from the Sun.

The ESCAPADE spacecraft then headed back toward Earth to perform this gravitational slingshot maneuver around our planet once Earth and Mars were favorably aligned.

“With this loiter orbit and Earth flyby, ESCAPADE is pioneering a new strategy for getting to Mars,” said Jeff Parker of Advanced Space, lead mission designer. “This method provides the flexibility to launch almost anytime and then use Earth’s gravity to get a boost to Mars, rather than waiting every two years to launch there directly when the planets are aligned.”

The first ESCAPADE spacecraft completed its close approach to Earth and its approximately 9-minute trans-Mars injection burn — the engine firing that commits the spacecraft to its path to Mars — at 5 a.m. EST on November 7, when it was about 1,000 miles above the planet’s surface. The second spacecraft followed suit two days later, completing its close approach and engine burn at 6 a.m. EST on November 9, when it was about 650 miles above the planet’s surface.

These powered flybys of Earth set both spacecraft on course for their 10-month cruise to Mars, culminating with their Mars orbit insertion burns planned for September 7 and September 9, 2027. Once in orbit around Mars, the two spacecraft will fly in formation to study how a million-mile-per-hour stream of material flowing from the Sun, known as the solar wind, interacts with the Martian environment and how that drives atmospheric loss at Mars.

“By better understanding how the solar wind affects the Martian environment, ESCAPADE’s findings could help us plan and prepare for future human exploration of the Red Planet,” said Michele Cash, ESCAPADE program scientist at NASA Headquarters.

The twin ESCAPADE spacecraft have already taken some science observations during their loiter orbit as they flew multiple times through Earth’s magnetotail, a part of our planet’s magnetic environment that gets stretched away from Earth, opposite the Sun, by the solar wind. During the 10-month trip to Mars, the spacecraft will also be able to study the dynamics of the solar wind between Earth and Mars.

Along the way, the spacecraft will perform a series of trajectory correction maneuvers to adjust their path and ensure that they are on a precise course to rendezvous with Mars in September 2027.

When they reach Mars, two days apart, each spacecraft will fire its engine for about 11 minutes to slow down and enter orbit around the planet. The spacecraft will then take several months to maneuver into their first science formation, where they will follow one another in the same orbit to study how the planet’s environment changes with time and location. Science operations are expected to begin in June 2028.

Six months later, the two spacecraft will shift into different orbits, with one traveling farther from Mars to observe the incoming solar wind and the other staying closer to the planet to study how Mars responds to the solar wind in real time. That science campaign is scheduled to last five months.

“This will be the first science mission to choreograph two orbiters around Mars, and the first time we will be able to make coordinated observations of the Martian environment from two different locations simultaneously,” said ESCAPADE’s principal investigator, Rob Lillis of the University of California, Berkeley.

Funded by NASA’s Heliophysics Division, ESCAPADE is part of the agency’s SIMPLEx (Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration) program, which supports missions that explore the Solar System in innovative ways with smaller budgets.

The University of California, Berkeley’s Space Sciences Laboratory leads the mission with key partners Rocket Lab; NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland; Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University; Advanced Space; and Blue Origin.

“The ESCAPADE mission continues the scientific legacy of historical Mars missions with a dedicated team driving new innovations for its journey to and at the Red Planet,” said Skyler Kleinschmidt, ESCAPADE program executive at NASA Headquarters.

Source: NASA.Gov

A Blue Tsunami Hit America Last Night!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 05 Nov 2026 07:49:00 +0000

America has spoken. Even though votes are still being counted across the country, two major winners have emerged in this year's midterm elections: The Democratic Party, and Americans who are fed up with all of the damage that was intentionally caused by Donald Trump and his merry band of pedophile-enabling MAGA Republicans in Congress.

Notable winners (as of this Blog entry):

-- Xavier Beccera as the newly-elected governor of California
-- Gina Hinojosa as the newly-elected Democratic governor of Texas
-- James Talarico as the newly-elected Democratic senator of Texas
-- Abdul El-Sayed as the newly-elected Democratic senator of Michigan
-- Keisha Lance Bottoms as the newly-elected Democratic governor of Georgia
-- David Crowly as the newly-elected Democratic governor of Wisconsin
-- Aaron Ford as the newly-elected Democratic governor of Nevada
-- Adam Hamilton as the first Democrat to win the Senate seat for Kansas since 1932
-- Annie Andrews as the newly-elected Democratic senator of South Carolina
-- Josh Turek as the newly-elected Democratic senator of Iowa
-- Roy Cooper as the newly-elected Democratic senator of North Carolina
-- Jon Ossoff for being re-elected as the Democratic senator of Georgia
-- Amy Acton as the newly-elected Democratic governor of Ohio
-- Deb Haaland as the newly-elected Democratic governor of New Mexico, and the first Native American woman to serve as a governor
-- Chris Pappas as the newly-elected Democratic senator of New Hampshire, and the first openly gay man to serve in the Senate
-- The Democratic Party for regaining full control of Congress
-- Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy...whose bombing of data centers in Russia last month allowed Americans to vote for a more Ukraine-friendly U.S. government without meddling by bots on social media apps owned by Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg

Notable losers:

-- Donald Trump
-- Vladimir Putin
-- Republican House Speaker/Election Denier/Top Grindr User Mike Johnson
-- Elon Musk
-- All of the losing conservative candidates that Musk spent around $500 million to help in these midterms
-- MAGA in general
-- Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman for becoming irrelevant in the new Democratic Senate

So yea, last night was a great night if you're an American who hates fascism and Trump's canoodling of Putin, Benjamin Netanyahu and billionaires like Musk and Zuckerberg. Here's hoping another Blue Tsunami, or maybe a Blue Typhoon, hits in November 2028.

Fly Aboard America's Next Saturn-bound Robotic Explorer!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 31 Oct 2026 17:31:00 +0000

NASA / Johns Hopkins APL

Send Your Name to Titan Aboard NASA’s Dragonfly Mission (News Release - October 29)

You may never soar under the clouds or over the organic sands of Saturn’s moon Titan, but your name can. NASA is inviting the public to send their names aboard the agency’s Dragonfly rotorcraft and be part of the first science mission to fly and explore the surface of another world.

To have your name included on a microchip aboard Dragonfly and receive a personalized digital boarding pass commemorating your place on this historic mission, visit:

https://go.nasa.gov/dragonfly-names

“NASA’s Dragonfly mission will simply blow your mind,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters in Washington. “By flying the first-ever rotorcraft science mission, NASA will explore Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, as we search for signs of habitability on a distant world that is most similar to our own. We are excited to bring humanity along for the journey of a lifetime, and we invite everyone to send their names on this small, but mighty rotorcraft that will unlock the secrets of the Universe in what is widely considered one of the most exciting space missions of our lifetime.”

The public can secure a place on Dragonfly’s passenger list until 11:59 p.m. EST January 15, 2027.

The Dragonfly rotorcraft is currently being assembled at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland. Scheduled to launch in 2028, the rotorcraft will travel to Titan, a remarkable world with a thick atmosphere, rivers and lakes of liquid methane, sweeping dunes, and a landscape rich in organic material. After arriving in 2034, Dragonfly will fly to different locations on the moon, exploring Titan’s diverse environments and searching for clues about prebiotic chemistry — the chemistry that came before biology — to help scientists better understand the ingredients and conditions for life.

Dragonfly is being designed and built under the direction of APL, which leads the mission for NASA. Elizabeth Turtle of APL is the principal investigator. Dragonfly is the fourth mission in NASA’s New Frontiers Program, managed by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the agency’s Science Mission Directorate.

Source: NASA.Gov

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The Latest Update on Humanity's Most-Distant Interstellar Probe...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 30 Oct 2026 06:21:00 +0000

Caltech / NASA - JPL

NASA’s Voyager 1 Conserves Power, Resolves Brief Communications Pause (News Release)

NASA’s Voyager team is celebrating two recent developments with the Voyager 1 spacecraft: In September, they successfully completed a months-long effort to stretch the spacecraft’s diminishing power supply. Then, on October 20, an unexpected loss of communication with the spacecraft resolved itself after 48 hours, before the team sent commands to the spacecraft to troubleshoot the issue.

In early September, engineers successfully turned off three devices on the Voyager 1 spacecraft and substituted them with three lower-power alternatives. Nicknamed the “Big Bang,” the energy-saving effort was completed about six weeks after the mission team performed the same swap on Voyager 2. The Big Bang will enable Voyager 1’s remaining science instruments to operate longer than previously anticipated.

The Voyagers get their power from radioisotope thermoelectric generators, which convert heat from decaying plutonium into electricity. With the plutonium supply continually depleting, both probes lose about 4 watts of power each year. Almost a half-century since Voyager launched, the spacecraft power margins have grown thin, requiring the team to conserve energy by shutting off nonessential devices and systems.

The Big Bang was unique because it required the swaps to occur simultaneously. The six devices help keep the spacecraft warm enough to operate in the frigid expanse of space, and only by swapping all three could the team both reduce the amount of power Voyager 1 uses and ensure that heat is properly distributed on the spacecraft.

In recent years, the dwindling power supply has forced the team to turn off two science instruments. The mission launched in 1977 with 10 dedicated science instruments, some of which were turned off after the spacecraft’s planetary encounters. Some instruments were left on to study the outer region of the heliosphere, a bubble of particles and magnetic fields created by the Sun.

Now, the Voyagers are traveling through interstellar space, the area outside the heliosphere, and are the only spacecraft to ever study this region directly. Without performing the Big Bang, the mission would have needed to turn off another instrument on Voyager 1 as early as summer 2027.

Brief signal loss

But between now and summer 2027, the team is at the ready for more surprises like the one that they recently encountered when they briefly lost contact with Voyager 1 on October 18 and 19. NASA’s Deep Space Network — large antennas at three facilities around the globe used to communicate with spacecraft at the Moon and beyond — was unable to detect a radio signal from the probe, which is 16 billion miles (24 billion kilometers) from Earth, during two scheduled communications attempts, 24 hours apart. The spacecraft’s signal reappeared 24 hours later, on October 20, and the team has maintained communication with it since then.

Engineers are still investigating what caused the communication loss. The team has so far determined that one group of thrusters went offline and their backups turned on. Such a swap is programmed to occur automatically if the spacecraft's computers detect something amiss with the active thrusters. This automatic response is known as fault protection and directs the spacecraft to put itself in a safe, or stable, configuration and pause normal operations, giving engineers time to diagnose the issue and take action.

“This is the first time we’ve seen the spacecraft do something like this, but we are also at a point in the mission where we have to expect the unexpected,” said Kareem Badaruddin, Voyager mission manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. “We’re relieved to be back in contact with Voyager 1 and are eager to understand what happened.”

Historic milestone

As the investigation continues, Voyager 1 is speeding at 38,000 mph (61,155 kph) towards a major milestone: On November 18, the spacecraft that has traveled farther than any other human-made object will be 16.09 billion miles (25.89 billion kilometers) from Earth — the equivalent of one light-day, or the distance that light can travel in one day. That means that the radio waves used to communicate with the probe take 24 hours to reach it, and the radio waves carrying the spacecraft’s return message take another 24 hours.

“If you want to say ‘hello’ to Voyager, you send your message and then you go home and you wait two days before you finally get a response,” said Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager at JPL.

The spacecraft will not detect any change in its environment when it passes one light-day, nor will anything change aboard the spacecraft. The milestone’s significance is in its demonstration of the vastness of the Universe and the endurance of humanity’s most distant explorer.

Source: NASA.Gov

What Could've Been with 'Trident'...Again

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 25 Oct 2026 20:05:00 +0000

L.M. Prockter et al. LPI / JPL / SwRI / Richard T. Par

So this month would've marked the second and final launch opportunity for Trident—a spacecraft that would've conducted a flyby of Neptune and its main moon Triton in the late 2030s had it been approved by NASA in June 2021—to lift off from Cape Canaveral in Florida and head on its interplanetary journey to the outer Solar System and beyond.

I read somewhere that this year's launch opportunity for Trident would've began today...but I apparently misread it as the mission's Wikipedia page states that the first launch opportunity would've commenced on October 25, 2025. Oh well. Either way, Trident met none of those milestones because this spacecraft doesn't exist.

This is just another Blog entry pondering about what could've been in the realm of American space exploration.

The Latest Update on America's Next Saturn-bound Robotic Explorer...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 24 Oct 2026 03:53:00 +0000

NASA / Johns Hopkins APL

NASA’s Dragonfly Completes First Simulated Flight (News Release)

Separated from its protective backshell, NASA’s Dragonfly rotorcraft autonomously speeds over the sand dunes of Titan. It scans the terrain below, searching for a safe place to land. When Dragonfly discovers a safe site, it turns, descends and lands at the selected location, touching down for the first time on the surface of Saturn’s largest moon.

A successful first flight – except, this wasn’t happening on Titan itself, but on a computer testbed at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, where the Dragonfly rotorcraft is undergoing integration and testing. It was the most comprehensive test to date of Dragonfly’s “first flight” in real time on flight-like avionics, incorporating most of the systems and maneuvers that the rotorcraft will employ when it arrives at Titan in 2034.

Dragonfly is scheduled to launch no earlier than 2028 for a six-year voyage to Saturn’s moon Titan, where it will spend three years flying from location to location to explore a range of sites to study the chemistry, geology and atmosphere of the Earthlike moon and ultimately advance our understanding of life’s chemical origins.

“The cool thing about first flight is that it’s our most challenging flight,” said Zach Putnam, Dragonfly mobility subsystem lead engineer at APL. “It uses every piece of flight sensor hardware on the lander.”

The recent test brought together flight software and avionics with simulated data input from the sensors that Dragonfly will use at Titan, including its newly-installed navigation cameras, inertial measurement units, and lidar system.

It was a milestone years in the making. The team has built Dragonfly’s flight capabilities incrementally, beginning with simulations of relatively simple activities such as the spinning of a single rotor. Later tests demonstrated a short “reposition” flight and a partial scouting flight, adding more sensors and capabilities at each step.

“Doing it incrementally is what enabled us to build these tests at all,” said Putnam. Adding lidar — the system that Dragonfly will use to measure terrain altitude and slope and identify potential hazards — provided the final piece needed to fully simulate what the rotorcraft will encounter on Titan.

The team generated simulated terrain for the lidar and created, in real time, the images that Dragonfly’s navigation cameras would see. A custom camera emulator used graphics processing units to render each simulated Titan scene in roughly the same 20 to 70 milliseconds exposure times that Dragonfly’s cameras will use during flight.

Running the complete sequence on flight-like hardware gave the team an important opportunity to see how all those pieces interact — including those details measured in milliseconds as information zips between different processes aboard the lander.

“These tests provide an important validation that everything works together,” said Putnam.

And there are many more tests to come. The team plans to run first flight on Dragonfly’s actual flight system, not a testbed, using the rotorcraft’s avionics. Engineers will also test other flight profiles and deliberately introduce faults to make sure that Dragonfly can respond autonomously if something goes wrong.

“That autonomy is essential at Titan, where Dragonfly will have to fly without real-time help from Earth,” Putnam said. “Everything we do on Titan has to happen autonomously.”

Striking a pose

Before Dragonfly can make that first flight on Titan, it has to shift into position to be able to fly. Testing is also underway to ensure that the mechanisms handling that critical step will lower the rotorcraft below the entry system’s backshell, where it can safely start its rotors prior to separation from the entry system and begin its final descent to Titan’s surface.

The test campaign evaluates Dragonfly’s “pose” mechanism, the system that will lower the rotorcraft from its stowed position inside the backshell into position for release during the descent at Titan. Engineers at Lockheed Martin in Colorado – where the elements of Dragonfly’s interplanetary cruise stage and atmospheric entry, descent and landing assembly are coming together – recently conducted static tests with representative mass, pushing and pulling on the mechanism to verify that it can withstand expected loads, as well as deployment tests to see how smoothly and quickly the system lowers, and whether it locks securely into place.

The tests also consider how Dragonfly’s backshell may swing beneath its parachute when the rotorcraft is deployed. Engineers tilt the test hardware to different angles and repeat the deployment to confirm that the mechanism performs properly across a range of conditions.

The pose structure connects the backshell to an aluminum interface structure that attaches to the Dragonfly lander. During the actual descent, the pose mechanism will lower that interface — and Dragonfly with it — before the rotorcraft separates and begins flying under its own power. The testing is designed to make sure that this critical transition works reliably before Dragonfly has to ever perform it nearly a billion miles from Earth.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Johns Hopkins APL / Ed Whitman

Lockheed Martin

The Latest Status Update on America's Newest Great Observatory...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 22 Oct 2026 23:01:00 +0000

NASA

NASA’s Roman Space Telescope Enters Final Commissioning Phase (News Release)

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope mission has now entered the science commissioning phase, having successfully completed a comprehensive checkout and refinement of the observatory and primary instrument performance.

“We’ve established that the observatory is fully functional,” said Julie McEnery, Roman’s senior project scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “The telescope can guide and take exposures, data flows appropriately, and we can slew from one place to another for observations. So now we’re drilling into the fine details of the quality of the images we’re collecting.”

Thus far, the commissioning process is going smoothly, and the observatory has already undergone several challenging activities. For example, scientists thought Roman might have difficulty observing places that are chock full of stars, or nebulae that are shrouded by dense dust.

“The way Roman locks onto a target is by holding steady on individual stars found in the direction it needs to point,” said Tom Barclay, Roman operations project scientist at NASA Goddard. “We had a concern that in regions where stars are either packed extremely close together or embedded in thick dust, the fine guidance system might get confused or have trouble staying tethered to those stars. But test observations of such regions have shown that Roman performs wonderfully in all cases.”

Roman’s observing requirements are extraordinarily stringent. Multiple factors can influence the consistency of a telescope’s images. If some images were blurrier or brighter than others, it would be difficult to determine whether cosmic objects were truly changing or just appeared to differ because of effects intrinsic to the telescope.

“To achieve the groundbreaking science we expect from Roman, we need to have a crystal clear window into space, not one marred by pointing jitter or out-of-focus images,” said Josh Schlieder, Roman’s Wide Field Instrument scientist at NASA Goddard. “Any imperfections that affect image quality must be minimized because even very small flaws could mask the small signals we are aiming to measure.”

Now, the team is performing a series of carefully-planned test observations that will allow them to characterize observatory performance, calibrate how the instruments respond to light, and refine the telescope’s image quality before transitioning to science operations. The mission’s initial test observations have gone so well that the team is beginning to experience Roman’s superpower: speed.

“During commissioning, we are taking several test observations of famous parts of the sky,” said Jeremy Perkins, an astrophysicist serving as Roman’s observatory integration and test scientist at NASA Goddard. “I am marveling at the level of detail Roman provides in very short time periods.”

Fast survey speeds translate to enormous cosmic vistas, each packed with planets, stars and galaxies galore. Large mosaics that used to be reserved for special occasions will soon become routine, and rare sightings will become customary.

“In a typical observation with Roman’s Wide Field Instrument, we’ll see objects that are a hundred million times fainter than the human eye can detect,” Schlieder said. “So just imagine what strange and unexpected things might be buried in all that data.”

Fine-tuning Roman’s image detail during science commissioning will help scientists more fully understand what to expect. Since some of the observatory’s systems are performing even better than required, it could open up new scientific capabilities, adding even more to the data deluge that the mission will return.

Source: NASA.Gov

The Latest Update on Japan's Newly-Launched Mission to Phobos...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 22 Oct 2026 04:59:00 +0000

JAXA

Completion of the Initial Critical Operations Phase of the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) Spacecraft (News Release)

Today, on October 21, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) confirmed that the critical sequence during the initial operations of the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) spacecraft, which launched on October 20, was successfully completed and that the spacecraft is in good health. This marks the completion of the initial critical operations phase - the period following the spacecraft’s separation from the launch vehicle until the completion of a series of operations to establish spacecraft health, including deployment of the solar array paddles, establishment of three-axis attitude control, and release of the medium-gain antenna (MGA) hold-down mechanism.

JAXA will now conduct initial functional checks of the spacecraft’s onboard equipment while preparing for the outbound cruise operations phase towards the Martian system.

JAXA expresses its deepest gratitude to all those who provided cooperation and support for the launch, tracking and control of the MMX spacecraft.

Source: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency

An Interplanetary Mission Led by Japan Is on its Way to Phobos!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 21 Oct 2026 06:59:00 +0000

JAXA

Launch Result of the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) Spacecraft aboard H3 Launch Vehicle Flight No.10 (News Release)

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) spacecraft aboard H3 Launch Vehicle flight No.10 at 04:41:03 JST on October 20, 2026 from the Tanegashima Space Center.

The H3 Launch Vehicle flew as planned, and approximately 71 minutes and 13 seconds after liftoff, the separation of the MMX spacecraft was confirmed. The MMX spacecraft was then injected into the predetermined orbit.

JAXA would like to express sincere gratitude for your support.

Source: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency

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Photos of the Day: 'Real Nikki' Finally Met 'Roaming Nikki' Near Hollywood This Past Weekend!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 05:45:00 +0000

Hamilton Pytluk / Universal Studios Hollywood

Just thought I'd share these cool pictures of Obsession star Inde Navarrette finally coming face-to-face with the actress who plays Nikki Freeman—Navarrette's character in Curry Barker's hit horror film—at Universal Studios' Halloween Horror Nights (HHN) near Hollywood yesterday.

Seeing as how Navarrette should be heading to New York City pretty soon to prepare for her hosting debut on NBC's Saturday Night Live on October 31st, I was wondering if she'd ever visit "Roaming Nikki" at HHN (there are no haunted houses at the annual event that's dedicated to Obsession this year, so Nikki just roams around the theme park interacting with guests and scaring them). Inde visiting the scare actress who plays Nikki was an awesome gesture...considering the online controversy that ensued last month when it was revealed that Obsession's 'final girl' was going to be featured at HHN.

Anyways, Curry Barker himself visited Roaming Nikki at HHN almost a month ago. See the video of the encounter at the bottom of this Blog entry!

Hamilton Pytluk / Universal Studios Hollywood

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The Latest Update on the Lunar Lander Built by Voyager Technologies (Formerly Astrobotic)...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 13 Oct 2026 18:01:00 +0000

Voyager Technologies

Voyager’s Griffin-1 On Track for the Moon (News Release)

Griffin-1 completes acceptance testing, passing major milestone ahead of lunar launch

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Voyager Technologies (NYSE: VOYG) announced that Griffin Mission One (Griffin-1), the company’s infrastructure-class lunar lander, successfully completed acceptance testing, a critical milestone on the path to its targeted launch to the Moon in late 2026.

“Griffin-1 marks a turning point for commercial lunar infrastructure,” said Dylan Taylor, Chairman and CEO, Voyager. “We are an enabler in building the transportation layer for the lunar economy: the logistics, access and systems that make sustained operations on the Moon possible. When Griffin touches down, it will be the largest commercial payload delivery in lunar history. The team has put years of work into this mission, and we are focused on getting Griffin to the Moon and putting that capability to work.”

Acceptance testing verified Griffin-1’s systems performance and confirmed the spacecraft’s readiness for the next phase of launch preparation. The mission will carry 10 payloads from six countries to the lunar South Pole, including payloads from NASA, the European Space Agency and other commercial partners.

Griffin-1 is now returning to Voyager’s Lunar Systems headquarters in Pittsburgh, where the team will complete final preparations ahead of shipment to Cape Canaveral, Florida for launch.

“Completing integration and environmental testing on a mission this complex reflects the quality and discipline of the team,” said John Thornton, executive vice president, Voyager. “Every payload on Griffin’s manifest represents a customer and a capability, and each contributes to the operational knowledge base we need to make the Moon a place where people can reliably live and work. That’s the foundation we’re here to deliver.”

Griffin‑1 was developed through NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative and will now be part of Moon Base Phase I objectives. The lander is designed to support a range of future lunar operations, including the delivery of rovers, science instruments and other infrastructure. Its capabilities are intended to help lay the groundwork for future lunar infrastructure, including power systems that can advance the knowledge, technologies and capabilities needed to develop an enduring human presence on the Moon.

Source: Business Wire

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NASA / JPL

NASA / JPL

Astrolab

Photos of the Day: Bear's Work Uniform...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 12 Oct 2026 05:21:00 +0000

Richard T. Par

Just thought I'd share this picture that I took of the shirt worn by Bear (Michael Johnston) at the Cassell's Music store in Obsession! This costume piece and a One Wish Willow were on display at the FocusFest film festival that I attended at the Universal Studios backlot near Hollywood yesterday.

This is the second wardrobe from Curry Barker's hit film that I saw in person over the past month; the other one being the black sundress that Nikki (Inde Navarrette) wore in the movie's climax. That outfit was on display inside of the Universal Cinema AMC theater at Universal CityWalk.

The Latest Update on America's Newest Space Telescope...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 30 Sep 2026 19:19:00 +0000

NASA

NASA Checks Roman Guidance System, Takes First Coronagraph Observation (News Release)

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s fine-guidance system, which allows the observatory to lock very steadily onto its targets during observations, passed a spate of tests from September 15 to 21. Then on September 22, the mission’s Coronagraph Instrument opened its eyes to cosmic light for the very first time.

The team assigned a small part of each of the 18 detectors in Roman’s primary instrument, the Wide Field Instrument, to rapidly observe a separate guide star — stars with well-known positions used as reference points. When Roman’s attitude control system gets the spacecraft pointed in the right direction, information from the fine-guidance system then helps hold it steady throughout each observation so that it doesn’t drift off target. Using only the attitude control system, Roman’s images wouldn’t be as crisp.

“Every Roman observation relies on its ability to stay precisely pointed at the correct region of space long enough to collect an image, which can take from minutes to hours for a deep exposure,” said Begoña Vila, Roman’s guiding instrument systems lead at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “The fine-guidance system reports the positions of the guide stars about four times each second to the attitude control system, which can move the observatory a tiny amount to counter any drift as needed. Our tests confirmed that we are able to keep the observatory very stable for science operations: better than 1/100,000 of a degree for half an hour at a time for Wide Field Instrument observations or for eight hours at a time for Coronagraph Instrument observations, which take much longer. This was a very exciting moment for the team.”

Roman’s current stability is roughly equivalent to focusing a laser beam on a U.S. dime from about 150 miles (about 240 kilometers) away. The team aims to improve this even further by tuning the guidance system, boosting the distance in the analogy to about 230 miles (370 kilometers).

Roman also has a new type of guiding that hasn’t been attempted before.

“Roman doesn’t have a separate guider instrument, like other space telescopes do,” Vila said. “Instead of tracking only a star’s point-like appearance, it will guide on detailed wavelength patterns called spectra. Because Roman is already equipped to measure spectra for science, it can use that same information to precisely position the telescope. We are looking forward to validating this spectral guiding mode in the coming weeks.”

Coronagraph captures first glimmer

Next, on September 22 and 27, the team tested out the fine-guidance system with the Coronagraph Instrument, which will demonstrate cutting-edge technology to block starlight and view planets and dusty disks around nearby stars.

“Roman’s coronagraph also has its own internal stability process, making it much more stable even than the Wide Field Instrument,” Vila said. That’s critical because even tiny vibrations or pointing errors could let starlight leak through, washing out the faint planets that scientists are trying to see.

The coronagraph woke up on September 1 and stretched its digital, electronic and mechanical “limbs” mid-month. Once the team confirmed that the fine-guidance system was holding the Coronagraph Instrument steady, scientists adjusted the focus so it could take its first bleary-eyed look at space that will help scientists fine-tune the instrument’s view.

“This observation confirms that the instrument can produce a focused image,” said Vanessa Bailey, a Roman Coronagraph Instrument scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. “It’s a very limited test that kicks off a methodical process of increasingly complex tasks that help us prepare for the instrument’s future observations.”

For this step, the Coronagraph Instrument captured a faint star in a neighboring galaxy called the Large Magellanic Cloud, with “noise” seeping through because the detectors have been kept at a warmer temperature than they will ultimately operate. That helps to ensure contamination does not stick to the detectors.

“We were kicking the tires, making sure light goes through the system,” Bailey said. “The second step, on Sunday, was an observation that confirmed our pointing. The team cooled the detectors down for better sensitivity, and we observed a new location in the Large Magellanic Cloud where we expected to see many stars in a single image. And we did! We’re breathing a sigh of relief!”

Source: NASA.Gov

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Caltech / IPAC – SELab / Isabel Swafford

Launch the Proposed Interstellar Probe on this Rocket, NASA!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 30 Sep 2026 05:07:00 +0000

Blue Origin

NASA Adds Blue Origin New Glenn 9×4 to Launch Services Contract (News Release)

In accordance with a contract on-ramp clause, NASA has added Blue Origin’s New Glenn 9×4 launch service to the NASA Launch Services (NLS) II contract. The New Glenn 9×4 launch service will be available to NASA’s Launch Services Program Office to use for future missions.

The NLS II contracts are multiple-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts with an ordering period through June 2030, and an overall period of performance through December 2032. The NLS II contracts include an on-ramp provision that provides an opportunity annually for new launch service providers to compete for future missions and allows existing contractors to introduce launch vehicles not currently on their NLS II contracts.

The NLS II contracts support the goals and objectives of the agency’s Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate, Science Mission Directorate, and the Research and Technology Mission Directorate. Under the contract, NASA can also provide launch services to other government agencies, such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Source: NASA.Gov

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Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

Photos of the Day: Meeting Harry, the Novelty Shop Guy in OBSESSION...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 27 Sep 2026 04:17:00 +0000

"Yea yea yea, you made a shitty wish and now you wanna reverse it. But you can't come in here with this energy, man!"

So a week ago today, I met Darin Toonder...who played Harry, the laid-back novelty shop clerk who gave Bear (Michael Johnston) grief for coming into the store—Spoiler Ahead—completely wrecked by the death of Sarah (Megan Lawless) at the hands of Nikki (Inde Navarrette) in Obsession. He's a really cool guy in person!

Toonder's photo op and autograph signing took place at the Goth Mall event inside The Cathedral in downtown Pomona, which is only around 2 miles from where I live. Imagine how stoked I would be if Navarrette, Lawless, Johnston, Cooper Tomlinson (who played Ian) and/or writer-director Curry Barker made an appearance in my neck of the woods as well! Happy Saturday.

The Latest Status on America's Newest Great Observatory...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 25 Sep 2026 19:23:00 +0000

NASA

NASA’s Roman Team Confirms Ground Stations Receiving Data (News Release)

NASA has now confirmed that all ground stations supporting the agency’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope are ready to receive the mission’s high volume of data once science operations begin by early 2027.

Observing the far reaches of the cosmos wouldn’t be possible without a network of ground stations strategically located around the world serving as a tether between Earth and space. Ground stations from NASA’s Near Space Network in New Mexico, ESA (European Space Agency) in Australia, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) in Japan will receive the science data at extremely high data rates, up to 500 megabits per second.

Recent testing ensured that these stations will be able to receive approximately 1.4 terabytes of data that Roman will downlink each day, the highest rate of any NASA astrophysics mission so far, from Roman’s location a million miles away in space.

To confirm this capacity, scientists began drawing down “housekeeping” information.

“This is real, operational data starting with details about how the instruments are doing, things like temperature, power draw, and preliminary image data,” said Bob Kalogerakos, a radio frequency engineer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

The Roman team started with JAXA’s Misasa Deep Space Station in Saku City on September 7. Engineers tested out the station’s antenna and confirmed that it can receive data at rates up to 500 megabits per second throughout most of the year. The rate will vary with Roman’s distance from and elevation relative to Earth as it orbits the Lagrange point 2, or L2.

“This was our first time downlinking data at Roman’s maximum rate,” said Matthew Wasiak, an advanced systems engineer at NASA Goddard. “There was also a typhoon in Japan during the test and conditions were not perfect, which makes this a particularly rigorous test.”

Adverse weather can create a major obstacle for drawing down space telescope data because raindrops are not much smaller than the radio wavelengths Roman is using to send its data. That means they can scatter or weaken the signals.

“Because of this, we have a diversity of ground stations, from the subtropical island of JAXA’s ground station in Japan to the arid Western Australian desert to summer monsoon-prone New Mexico,” Kalogerakos said. “When weather and rain do interfere with our signal, our automated ground systems will determine what data didn’t downlink properly and ask the spacecraft to re-transmit from its onboard solid-state recorder in a few hours.”

After the Misasa Deep Space Station passed the team’s tests, their focus shifted to the Near Space Network ground station and its backup in White Sands, New Mexico, from September 8 to 11. Both antennas successfully downlinked data at the rates the team tested.

Finally, the team tested the ESA station, located near New Norcia in Western Australia, on September 17. Again, engineers cycled through different rates, and the ground system successfully downlinked even the highest.

“These ground stations are Roman’s primary conduit to get our data down to Earth, and the team is thrilled with their exceptional performance,” said Jeremy Perkins, Roman’s observatory integration and test scientist at NASA Goddard. “It’s great news for a mission that will send back data at an incredible pace.”

Bringing Roman’s data to the ground is an international effort. NASA’s Near Space Network ground station in New Mexico receives Roman’s science data in partnership with antennas from ESA in Australia and JAXA in Japan. Managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, the agency’s Deep Space Network stations in California, Spain, and Australia provide critical tracking data, observatory telemetry, and command.

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA

A New Space-based Observatory Is on the Horizon...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 24 Sep 2026 05:05:00 +0000

NASA

NASA Selects Far-Infrared Telescope as First in New Mission Class (News Release)

NASA announced on Wednesday that a mission to explore the history and evolution of the Universe, PRIMA (PRobe far-Infrared Mission for Astrophysics), is advancing to the next phase of development. This space telescope is the first in a new class of NASA astrophysics missions, called Probe Explorers, within the agency’s longstanding Explorers Program.

“The PRIMA mission is humanity’s next window into the deep Universe. It will unveil the obscure across cosmic time to better understand the formation of planets, stars, black holes, and even how water on Earth came to be,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters in Washington.

NASA selected PRIMA to move into Phase B, the stage of development that advances the preliminary design and technology development for the mission. The mission is subject to a confirmation review, based on technical, programmatic, and cost performance, to determine its readiness to begin implementation in Phase C. If confirmed, PRIMA’s project cost is capped at $1.2 billion, not including launch and other non-project costs.

The observatory will be targeted to launch in 2033, for a planned five-year mission.

With a 5.9-foot telescope, PRIMA will conduct deep, sensitive surveys of the Universe in far-infrared light, helping bridge the gap between existing infrared observatories, such as NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, and radio telescopes. By studying radiant energy that only emerges in the far-infrared, PRIMA will address a wide range of questions about the Universe. This includes the origins of planets outside our Solar System, how galaxies and their black holes have grown and evolved over cosmic history, and how dust and heavy elements have built up in the Universe over time – all helping paint a better picture of why the Universe looks the way it does today.

“A single mission alone can’t probe all the Universe’s mysteries. But by extending the survey capabilities of our fleet into far-infrared wavelengths with PRIMA, we’re enabling an incredibly comprehensive look at the cosmos,” said Shawn Domagal-Goldman, director, Astrophysics Division, NASA Headquarters. “With our Webb and Roman space telescopes, we set a cadence of launching premiere-class missions in both halves of the decade. We’re going to keep that up and kick off the next decade with PRIMA, as part of a pipeline that will consistently have missions of this caliber ready to go.”

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s 2020 Decadal Survey, Pathways to Discovery in Astronomy and Astrophysics for the 2020s, recommended that NASA establish this new Probe Explorers mission class. NASA selected PRIMA for development after detailed evaluation of concept studies for Probe Explorer missions, based on their scientific merit in alignment with the Decadal Survey’s recommendations, feasibility of their development plans on cost and schedule, and use of technologies that could support the development of future large missions.

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California will manage the PRIMA mission. Other partners include NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. The PRIMA mission will also have contributions from international partners: CNES (Centre National D’Etudes Spatiales), ASI (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana), DLR (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt), CSA (Canadian Space Agency), KASI (Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute)/KASA (Korea AeroSpace Administration), JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and the UK Space Agency.

The Explorers Program is the oldest continuous NASA program designed to provide frequent, low-cost access to space using principal investigator-led space science investigations relevant to the Science Mission Directorate’s astrophysics and heliophysics programs. Since the Explorer 1 launch in 1958, which discovered Earth’s radiation belts, the Explorers Program has launched more than 100 missions, including the Uhuru and Cosmic Background Explorer missions that led to Nobel prizes for their investigators.

The Explorers Program is managed by NASA Goddard for the Science Mission Directorate, which conducts a wide variety of research and scientific exploration programs for Earth studies, space weather, the Solar System, and the Universe.

Source: NASA.Gov

Whose House? A Great Monday Night Victory at the Rams House!

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 22 Sep 2026 04:25:00 +0000

Welcome back, Aaron Donald!

The Super Bowl-winning defensive end came out of a 2-year retirement to help his former team, the Los Angeles Rams, emerge victorious against the New York Giants with a 28-6 win at Inglewood's SoFi Stadium tonight. The Rams are 1-1 in the new NFL season after a 27-7 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in Melbourne, Australia, on September 10.

Next up: The Denver Broncos...who are 1-1 as well, but will have home field advantage against the Rams on September 27. Here's hoping that Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald, Davante Adams, Kyren Williams, Blake Corum, Trent McDuffie and Co. will carry today's momentum to that Sunday matchup in Empower Field at Mile High.

Going to baseball, the Dodgers' final game of the 2026 MLB regular season—against the San Francisco Giants—will be on September 27 as well. I have no respect for team owner Mark Walter, but I'm rooting for the National League West division champions to win the Fall Classic again. Carry on.

Photos of the Day: Freaky Nikki's Final Outfit...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 17 Sep 2026 03:55:00 +0000

Richard T. Par

A week ago today, I went to Universal Citywalk near Hollywood to check out the final attire worn by Nikki Freeman (Inde Navarrette) in the climax of Obsession.

The black dress was displayed next to costumes worn by Demi Moore in 2024's Oscar-nominated horror film The Substance, and Thomasin McKenzie in 2021's horror flick Last Night in Soho, respectively.

The costumes were on display in a separate room to the left of the main lobby at CityWalk's Universal Cinema AMC theater, so I had to buy a movie ticket in order to view the three outfits up-close. So which film did I buy a ticket for, you ask? The romantic comedy Finding Emily...which I already saw at a local Harkins theater on September 2.

No, I didn't stay to watch Finding Emily again. But yes, I enjoyed that rom-com (even though its ending was unsurprisingly predictable) very much.

Richard T. Par

Richard T. Par

Richard T. Par

Richard T. Par

Richard T. Par

Richard T. Par

Richard T. Par

Richard T. Par

Status Update #2 on America's Newest Great Observatory...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 16 Sep 2026 05:35:00 +0000

NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Tyler Desjardins (STScI)

NASA Activates Roman’s Primary Instrument, Checks Out Coronagraph (News Release)

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope team has successfully activated the Wide Field Instrument, a 300-megapixel infrared camera that will allow scientists to explore wide swaths of the cosmos very quickly without sacrificing exquisite detail.

Roman’s planet imager — the Coronagraph Instrument — also stretched its digital, electronic and mechanical “limbs” as part of an initial test after waking up earlier this month.

These steps are part of a months-long series of calibrations and tests, as Roman continues its million-mile journey to its destination at the second Lagrange point, L2.

Sky-scanner comes online

Each image taken by the Wide Field Instrument, or WFI, will capture a patch of the sky bigger than the apparent size of a full moon with all the sharpness of space telescopes like NASA’s Hubble. Its sweeping cosmic surveys will help scientists discover new information about planets beyond our Solar System, untangle mysteries like dark energy, and map how matter is structured and distributed throughout the cosmos. The mission’s broad, crisp view will also produce an exciting new resource for a wide range of additional scientific studies.

“After years of effort to build and test the instrument on the ground, we now have confirmation that it is operational in space. This is a huge milestone for the team at Goddard, our industry teams at BAE Systems, Inc. and Teledyne, and our science centers,” said Josh Schlieder, the Wide Field Instrument scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “There is much to do, but we are on our way to groundbreaking science.”

Before the team could activate the WFI, they had to let it rest for 10 days to dry out and decontaminate the detectors at a relatively warm (compared to their final operating temperature) -85° Fahrenheit, or -65° Celsius. On the morning of September 11, they turned off the instrument heater and let the WFI cool down to -225° Fahrenheit (-143° Celsius), at which point they could activate Roman’s 18 infrared detectors, which combined have a sensing area about the size of a laptop screen.

Later that night, the team activated the calibration system, which they used the next morning to start sending test data through the instrument and down to engineers on the ground. On Saturday evening, the focus shifted to the element wheel — a system of filters, prisms and other optics used to tune the wavelengths of light that reach the detectors and spread light from cosmic objects into individual colors — as engineers tested it in the absence of gravity for the very first time.

Finally, on Sunday morning, the team made sure that the WFI’s focus mechanism functioned properly — an important step since it will be used to focus the hundreds of thousands of images the instrument will take. While these activities were happening, the detectors continued to cool to their final temperature of about -300° Fahrenheit (-183° Celsius).

All of these assessments confirmed that the instrument is working as expected. The mission remains on track to release Roman’s first science images by early 2027.

Coronagraph in tip-top shape

The Roman Coronagraph is a system of optics, masks, self-flexing mirrors, and sensors designed to demonstrate the most advanced technologies ever flown in space for directly imaging planets around other stars. It will block the glare from stars and make it possible for scientists to see the faint reflected light from planets in orbit around them.

Scientists and engineers at the Coronagraph Commanding Center at Caltech/IPAC in Pasadena, California, confirmed that they can communicate with all of the instrument’s components: software, thermal control, mechanisms, cameras and the avionics which drive all of these. Essentially, operators on the ground ensured they could remotely flip all of the switches that allow them to control the instrument, like the movable mechanisms that hold all of its masks, color filters, lenses and prisms.

The test also involved confirming that the thermal control is performing as expected, warming the hardware to operating temperatures — a balmy 72° Fahrenheit (22° Celsius). Aside from the detectors, the coronagraph is designed to work at near-room temperature to make it easier to test and to match the material properties of the deformable mirrors.

“Now that this test is complete, we’ve been decontaminating: sitting idle with our detectors warm so anything that’s stuck to the surface, such as water or trace chemicals, will tend to leave it,” said Eric Cady, an optical engineer leading commissioning efforts for the Roman Coronagraph at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. “This will continue for 30 days, with occasional stops to do other early calibration activities.”

Source: NASA.Gov

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NASA / Chris Gunn

The Latest Status Update on America's Newest Great Observatory...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 15 Sep 2026 04:31:00 +0000

NASA

Fuel Savings Double Potential Lifetime for NASA’s Roman Mission (News Release)

The results are in: NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s very accurate first mid-course correction, along with other fuel savings, are expected to more than double the mission’s potential operational lifetime.

“As a result of exquisite planning by our orbital dynamics team, brilliant execution by the operations team, and a precise launch from SpaceX, Roman has fuel for at least 22 years of potential science operations,” said Jamie Dunn, center director at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

The added life comes from the first mid-course correction’s accuracy, extra fuel added prior to launch, and anticipated results from Roman’s upcoming second mid-course correction and orbital insertion.

Original projected mission lifetime: 10 years

Roman was designed for a five-year primary mission, plus a five-year extended mission — a 10-year fuel budget in total. Because fuel is the observatory’s primary consumable resource, any fuel savings could enable additional years of observations beyond the 10-year design life.

First burn results: +4 years

The Roman team executed its first burn on August 31 to adjust the observatory’s trajectory towards its final orbit and has since been analyzing its effects on the mission. In addition to being executed with more than 99% accuracy, the maneuver required less than 10% of the fuel that the team had budgeted for: about 40 pounds (18 kilograms), down from the allocation of 441 pounds (200 kilograms).

Bonus fuel at launch: +4 years

Extra fuel loaded at launch could enable roughly four more years on top of that. This launch surplus exists because Roman launched lighter than planned: The team had budgeted fuel using a conservative maximum weight of 21,605 pounds (9,800 kilograms), well above the observatory’s actual weight of 17,760 pounds (8,056 kilograms). The lighter spacecraft needed less fuel for the mid-course correction, and its lower weight also left room to fill the propellant tanks beyond what the 10-year mission alone required.

“A spacecraft’s mass changes throughout the design and build process, so we base the propellant budget on a set maximum value so we won’t come up short,” said Alison Rao, the Roman propulsion lead at NASA Goddard. “We track the propellant needed based on actual mass throughout integration and testing as well, to make sure we have wiggle room. Since Roman’s was lower than we budgeted for, we were able to fill the propellant tanks to their capacity rather than only filling them as much as we needed to for the 10-year requirement.”

Upcoming burn, orbital insertion: +4 years expected

Thanks to the first mid-course correction’s success, the second burn is expected to be very small and save even more fuel. The team can also wait longer to conduct this follow-up burn, now planned for later this month. It will give the observatory the last bit of energy required to achieve its targeted position prior to maneuvering into its final orbit at L2, approximately 100 days after launch, or about early December.

According to current projections, both maneuvers will use less fuel than planned, potentially saving even more for future science.

Once in orbit around L2, Roman will only require periodic station-keeping burns roughly every 28 days.

Source: NASA.Gov

Artwork of the Day: Optimus Prime in the Heat of Battle...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 13 Sep 2026 19:45:00 +0000

Richard T. Par

To honor the late and great Peter Cullen—the voice of Optimus Prime, Winnie the Pooh's Eeyore, and the vocal effect behind The Predator—here's a drawing of Optimus that I completed a week ago today.

It was actually a challenge to illustrate the Generation 1 (G1) version of Optimus Prime...as I wanted to make sure that I got all of his iconic features and color scheme right. I ended up looking at different artwork and photos of toys to add as much detail to Prime as possible without negating his G1 appearance. Imagine if I tried drawing the live-action version of the Autobot leader from the Michael Bay movies!

Speaking of Bay's Transformers, here's a clip of that memorable scene where Sam (Shia LaBeouf) and Mikaela (Megan Fox) meet Optimus Prime and his fellow Autobots for the first time in one of the highest grossing films of 2007. Happy Sunday!

A Quarter Century Later, We Have Not Forgotten...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 21:09:00 +0000

It has now been 25 years since 2,977 innocent people were killed by 19 terrorists on one of the darkest days in America's history. We continue to honor them...even as the United States faces new kinds of challenges and threats, most of them homegrown, to our 250-year-old democracy today.

The World Trade Centers fell... The Pentagon was damaged... 40 souls (not including the four cowardly hijackers on that flight) were lost in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. But heroes emerged at all three sites of tragedy on that fateful day in 2001.

Never Forget.

If you were young in 2001, or weren’t even born yet, it can be hard to imagine what 9/11 felt like. The shock of that beautiful, cloudless morning. The heartbreak of the families whose loved ones were taken with such swiftness and cruelty. The realization that the forces of…
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) September 11, 2026

Twenty-five years ago today, we lost 2,977 souls and in the years since, thousands more to illnesses caused by the attack on our country.

This morning, Jill and I hold close the families who carry that loss every day. We honor the heroes of September 11th: the firefighters and… https://t.co/r7NJSS5kJb
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) September 11, 2026

25 years have passed since September 11, 2001. A generation has grown up in the years since, but our responsibility to remember has not changed.

We remember the people who went to work that morning and never came home, and we remember the families who have carried their memories… pic.twitter.com/mINuTlwQk2
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) September 11, 2026

25 years ago, terrorists killed nearly 3,000 people, including 2,753 New Yorkers.

As we remember that terrible day, let us also remember the first responders, office workers and strangers who ran toward danger to help each other. Let us remember the extraordinary compassion,… pic.twitter.com/AO4RFEOZA2
— Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) September 11, 2026

Video of the Day: An Obsession with Hot Wings...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 09 Sep 2026 04:59:00 +0000

Check out this latest episode of Hot Ones Versus by the First We Feast channel...featuring a hilarious faceoff between Obsession's Inde Navarrette and Michael Johnston!

This video had lots of funny moments between the duo—from Johnston needing to bring up the fact that he was "a quarter Mexican" after lightheartedly picking on Navarrette's Latino yearning for hot and spicy foods, namely hot Cheetos (she jokingly called upon the Mexican community to 'cancel' Johnston for his insolence), to the "horror charades" game at the end where Inde excitedly guessed that the correct answer to Michael's question was The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

This Hot Ones Versus episode had some heartwarming revelations as well...such as the fact that Inde always picked up the phone whenever Michael called her, even though she's now "booked and busy" with such upcoming projects as Marvel Studios' 2028 X-Men movie and a sci-fi thriller called The Waffle House Index. Also, Navarrette made Johnston blush after genuinely saying that she would never replace him with another actor to play Bear in Obsession—even if she was offered $10 million to do so. Michael responded in kind that he couldn't picture anyone else to portray Freaky Nikki in Curry Barker's hit horror film.

Anyways, view the episode below before I end up spoiling more moments in it! Just one more question: Did Inde secretly intend on making Michael look like Joaquin Phoenix's Joker when she drew on his face? Watch Hot Ones Versus now!

A Major Milestone for Europe and Japan's Joint Mission to the Swift Planet...

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 08 Sep 2026 06:07:00 +0000

BepiColombo Begins Mercury Arrival with MTM Separation Success (News Release - September 7)

On 3 September 2026 at 15:49 CEST, the European Space Agency's BepiColombo Mission Control Team at the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) received the signal they had been waiting for – BepiColombo’s Mercury Transfer Module (MTM) successfully separated from the spacecraft stack. This landmark achievement for the ESA and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) mission marks the first step of BepiColombo's long-awaited arrival at Mercury.

Over the last eight years, BepiColombo has travelled 9.9 billion kilometres through the inner Solar System and completed nine planetary flybys to reach this historic milestone. Despite parting with the module, BepiColombo would not have made it this far without MTM. It carried BepiColombo from Earth to Mercury, providing power and the highly-advanced solar electric propulsion (SEP) needed to navigate its complex space journey.

Now, MTM’s job is complete.

This separation is the first in a sequence of key manoeuvres that will ultimately see BepiColombo become the first mission to place two spacecraft in orbit around Mercury, in December 2026. The mission's Mercury arrival phase is one of the most complex planetary arrival sequences ever attempted by ESA.

After an intense day of operations at ESA's mission control centre in Darmstadt, Germany, ESA, industry partners and the mission's scientific community celebrated the acquisition of signal confirming MTM's successful separation. Thousands also followed the milestone live on ESA's YouTube channel.

Letting go

In the months leading up to MTM separation, rigorous simulations challenged the Mission Control Team (MCT) with a wide range of operational scenarios.

On 3 September 2026 came the real deal. At 12:00 CEST, the team gave the official "GO" for separation. For those in the Main Control Room, it marked the culmination of months of preparation.

As the expected separation time arrived at 14:00 CEST, silence fell over mission control. The team would have to wait nearly two hours for confirmation to arrive from 200 million kilometres away.

Following separation, the remaining spacecraft stack entered safe mode, readjusted its attitude and reconfigured itself before transmitting its status back to Earth.

At 14:20 CEST, a preliminary Doppler signal provided the first indication that separation had taken place.

"We heard it loud and clear in the voice loop from Flight Dynamics Manager, Frank Budnik, that they could clearly see from the Doppler data that MTM had separated. After all this waiting and preparation, we all looked at each other and hugged. It was a very powerful moment," says Emmanuela Bordoni, ESA BepiColombo B-shift Spacecraft Operations Manager.

With ESA's Estrack Cebreros and Malargüe deep-space antennas locked on target, all eyes turned to the incoming telemetry.

At 15:49 CEST, mission control received the long-awaited acquisition of signal, prompting cheers and applause.

"We are thrilled, but also relieved. Separating two spacecraft from 200 million kilometres away is not something we do every day. We have prepared intensively for this moment, so we are really pleased to have had a perfect separation," says a beaming Ignacio "Nacho" Clerigo, ESA BepiColombo Spacecraft Operations Manager.

Farewell MTM

Every great collaboration deserves a proper goodbye.

On its final day as part of BepiColombo, MTM captured its last images, continuing a role that it had fulfilled throughout the mission's journey to Mercury.

Alongside its solar arrays and ion thrusters, MTM carried three monitoring cameras that documented the voyage. During the cruise phase, they captured daily snapshots of the spacecraft's journey through the inner Solar System.

The final images marked the closing entry in an eight-year photo diary and the end of a remarkable collaboration that carried the mission to Mercury's doorstep.

A full collection of these images is available in the ESA Planetary Science Archive.

As for MTM, with no antenna or onboard computer of its own, the now inoperable module will remain in a stable orbit around the Sun.

"We feel a bit sad to see our old friend MTM going away. It did an astonishing job bringing MPO and Mio here, but as Freddie Mercury once sang, the show must go on!" says Nacho.

To mark the achievement, the MCT took part in one of ESOC's most enduring traditions: the sticker ceremony. On the day after separation, the team gathered to add the MTM sticker on the Briefing Room glass door, securing its place among the missions that have shaped ESOC's history.

"I feel so proud of this team. This is the perfect start to arrival phase," says a smiling Santa Martínez Sanmartín, ESA BepiColombo Mission Manager.

Carrying the mission

Roughly the size of a small car, the Mercury Transfer Module carried two 15-metre-long solar wings that powered the entire spacecraft stack and propelled it using its highly-advanced solar electric propulsion (SEP) system.

This technology uses solar energy to turn xenon gas into plasma that is expelled through four ion thrusters. Unlike chemical propulsion, which provides short, powerful bursts of acceleration, SEP delivers gentle but continuous thrust for days, weeks or even months while using far less propellant.

This efficiency is what made BepiColombo's complex journey to Mercury possible. Along the way, the mission overcame significant challenges. BepiColombo's route to Mercury needed a mid-course rethink after an issue reduced the power available from MTM's solar arrays.

Mission teams adapted the trajectory, allowing the spacecraft to remain on track for arrival.

On 15 June 2026, SEP was switched off, bringing MTM's primary mission to an end and setting up the next major milestone which we saw on 3 September – MTM separation.

What is next for BepiColombo?

Following MTM separation, BepiColombo is still more than three million kilometres from Mercury.

Unlike most interplanetary missions, arrival is not a single event but a six-month sequence of carefully choreographed manoeuvres.

“The next separation will be Mio. After seeing the successful separation of MTM I feel confident about what lies ahead,” says JAXA's BepiColombo Project Scientist, Go Murakami.

With MTM's job complete, the remaining spacecraft stack now enters a new phase of the journey. Using MPO's chemical propulsion system, the MCT will fine-tune the trajectory ahead of Mercury orbit insertion on 21 November. Mio will then be deployed in early December, before MPO is guided into its final science orbit in March 2027.

"Although we already have great science from the cruise phase and nine planet flybys, it's fantastic that we've taken this first important step towards finally being able to use all the powerful instruments on both MPO and Mio to study Mercury," says ESA BepiColombo Lead Project Scientist, Geraint Jones.

By April 2027, the two spacecraft will begin their scientific investigations, offering unprecedented insights into Mercury's surface, interior, magnetic field and surrounding environment.

Source: European Space Agency

ESA / BepiColombo / MTM